(Thanks for this -- a really important issue. Great to have so much energy and passion percolating on the topic -- and great to have the legislature listening. - promoted by Charley on the MTA)
Report from Anti-Violence Project Chair Don Gorton:
The Boston Globe estimated that 300 people filled State House hearing room A1 for the 11/17/09 hearing on anti-bullying legislation. That estimate sounds about right: it was standing room only. A large number of the seats were filled by students from the Rashi School, a Newton-based Reform Jewish private school, who were attending as part of a class project. There were perhaps 40 school-age children in the audience, and their presence alone was a powerful signal to legislators.
Initial Testimony
11 bills in total were under consideration, but the bulk of the support was behind H. 483, An Act Relative to Bullying Prevention, sponsored by Rep. John Rogers of Norwood and initiated by the Anti-Defamation League ("ADL"). Rep. Matt Patrick of Falmouth was the first to testify, and he threw his support behind H. 483. Next to testify was Rep. Anthony Cabral of New Bedford, who introduced H. 364. He advocated that the various bills be consolidated into a single piece of legislation to report out of committee. He said he wanted a "bill with teeth." He noted that educators and health care providers have a duty to report child abuse if they learn of it, and said the rule should be the same for school employees who find out about bullying. He advocates that "consequences" be imposed where a school employee fails to report bullying activity.
House Minority Leader Brad Hill of Ipswich testified in favor of his bill, H. 428. He noted that anti-bullying bills have been pending in the legislature for 6 years, and criticized the delay in enacting a law. He said that he has regularly received assurances from Superintendents that they're committed to acting against bullying and have plans, but still the problem seems to be getting worse. He suggested that schools need "better plans." Responding to Rep. Hill, Rep. Marty Walz, House Chairman of the Ed Committee indicated that the committee would likely develop a single piece of legislation for action, taking the best from all the bills.
Rep. Paul Donato of Medford, who co-sponsored anti-bullying legislation with former Sen. Jarrett Barrios, testified in favor of anti-bullying legislation generally, and noted that too much time had passed without legislative action. A parent of a bullied student from New Bedford, Gary Pinto, testified in support of Rep. Cabral's bill. He had organized an anti-bullying community group called "safe zones." He favored mandatory reporting. Grace Fritato of New Bedford advocated efforts to rehabilitate bullies as part of a comprehensive response.
61-year-old Evelyn Kaufman testified as a survivor of bullying. She emphasized that bullying during childhood had left her scarred for life. She attempted suicide and continues to need mental health services. A Quincy parent, Goulastan Malek (sp.?) described the bullying to which his partially blind son had been subjected, and how the school had failed to act to remedy the problem despite repeated requests. |
| ADL Coordinated Testimony
Michael Sheetz, the Vice-Chair of the ADL regional board, described the ADL bill, H. 483 as the most comprehensive of the 11 under consideration. He noted that Massachusetts lags behind in efforts to fight bullying; 38 other states, including North Carolina and Alabama, already have laws in place. He advocated that the bill be amended to add into the definition enumerated categories, differentiating characteristics such as race, religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity, which influence bullies' selection of targets. Asked why enumeration was warranted, Sheetz said that bullying related to sexual orientation and gender identity is not treated as seriously otherwise. Chairman Walz requested proposed amendment language to add in enumerated categories. (GLAD has developed an amendment which has the support of the advocacy organizations participating in the lobbying effort.)
The most moving testimony of the day came from a panel of three parents of bullied children. First to testify was Theresa Jackson, the mother of an autistic boy from Sandwich. 12 years old at the time, the boy went to a school dance and "had the time of his life." Another student videotaped his unusual dance movements and posted the video on You Tube, triggering abusive comments online and taunting from classmates at school. The boy was devastated because he could not understand why someone would do that to him. Ms. Jackson choked up early in her testimony, and I teared up too. She described the insensitive reaction of school administrators. One teacher told the boy to "suck it up." The boy wound up transferring to a different school and remains terrified of going to another school dance. Ms. Jackson had the committee riveted as she spoke.
Sirdeaner Walker of Springfield testified about the suicide of her 11-year-old son Carl Walker-Hoover earlier this year. He was repeatedly taunted as being "gay" and for "dressing like a girl." Ms. Walker complained to school employees, but nothing was done to make the bullying stop. She was told that bullying was "ordinary social interaction" and that Carl and his tormentors would be friends by seventh grade. She described being at home one evening, cooking supper for her 4 children and thinking that Carl was doing homework in his room. When she went to his room, she discovered his body hanging by an electrical cord, an image which continues to haunt her. She has since teamed up with GLSEN to promote awareness of harassment triggered by sexual orientation and gender identity prejudice.
The third parent, Dr. Robin D'Antona, lost her child to suicide brought on by remorseless bullying in 1993. Since then, she has dedicated her life to anti-bullying education, and is a certified trainer in the Olweus anti-bullying method. She noted that there is an established positive correlation between effective bullying prevention and student academic achievement. She had three basic points to get across: bullying is pervasive, controllable, and affects everyone. A legislator asked if the law should cover charter schools, such as the one Carl Walker-Hoover attended. Responding, Chairman Walz said whatever bill comes out of committee will apply to charter schools. Chairman Walz was understated when she described the parents' testimony as "extremely powerful."
The next panel included 4 students, including 2 from the Rashi School in Newton. The most interesting witness was an admitted former bully. The Rashi School has a robust and effective anti-bullying program, and the student was actively counseled and assigned to do a research project on the effects of bullying on its target. He said he developed compassion and empathy for his targets, something he had not felt before, and that prompted a change in his behavior. A female student said she had been insensitive and practiced social exclusion, until a school awareness campaign led her to rethink her behavior. Emily Dale of Swampscott related the torment she went through when she started 8th grade. She was taunted for wearing glasses and being Jewish. When she reported the bullying, the bully was mildly disciplined, but things got worse as the bully's friends ganged up on her. The school did nothing to protect her from retaliation. Emily had an episode where she destroyed all of her personal items in her bedroom, then retreated to her closet to cry. She said she gained the courage to carry on when her mother came to her and extended a hand. She's now in a private school. Finally, Brigitte Berman, the teenaged author of Dorie Witt's Guide to Standing Up to Bullies spoke about her harrowing experiences and how she developed strategies for standing up for herself.
A panel of experts followed. Dr. Elizabeth Englander, head of the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center ("MARC") at Bridgewater State College, delivered 11 pages of comments from the parents of targets of bullying. She described the role of MARC, which offers free bullying prevention programming and training for Massachusetts schools. She said there was a need for the state to define minimum standards to give schools uniform guidance in addressing the problem. Professor Jack Levin of Northeastern University stressed the long-lasting effects of bullying. He recounted a conversation he had with a former target in her 40's, who is so debilitated by childhood bullying that she is unable to hold a job or form intimate relationships. He also noted that targets can lash out in horrific violence. He spoke of the Virginia Tech gunman who killed 32 people. He had a history of being bullied that stretched back to his Middle School days, and was never offered "a helping hand." Heidi McCoy, a graduate student studying at Bridgewater State under Dr. Englander also spoke, offering statistical information.
Testimony of Right Wing Groups
Two organizations which have fiercely opposed LGBT rights in Massachusetts, Mass. Resistance and the Mass. Family Institute, offered cautionary testimony, but did not flatly oppose legislation. Brian Camenker of Mass. Resistance voiced his suspicion that anti-bullying legislation was a "homosexual activist cause." He argued that "special interest groups" were behind the legislative push, and pointed to the overflow crowd as evidence of their machinations. He said the bill represented an "agenda." He contended that H. 483 was overly comprehensive and "way overdone." In his somewhat desultory remarks, he also protested the characterization of Mass Resistance as a "hate group," which he insisted is not true. (The Southern Poverty Law Center includes them as a "hate group" in its authoritative listing.)
Camenker drew pointed questions from the committee, particularly H.483 sponsor Rep. John Rogers. He had to admit that he supported the provision for parental notification when children are bullied. He said the way to deal with bullies was "to read them the riot act.". He admitted that bullying is often triggered by perceptions of the target's status. As he put it, "kids act weird" and that causes bullying. Put on the spot by Rep. Allen McCarthy, he said some legislative action was necessary.
Sally Knowlton expressed her concern that anti-bullying education was twisted to support homosexuality. She said that bullying prevention conveys a message that "gay is good" and that message needed to be stopped. She cited an incident in Washington state where a nine-year-old boy was praised by a teacher for saying he didn't like it when kids called other kids "gay" as though that were a bad thing. She asserted that being gay is not good; it leads to sickness and death; and no one is born "that way."
Evelyn Reilly of the Mass. Family Institute, which espouses more a "moderate" brand of homophobia than does Mass. Resistance, conceded that something needed to be done. She said the bills before the legislative were well-intended but had some problems. For example, she opposes provisions calling for anti-bullying education to be woven into general school curriculum subjects. She also saw no need to address issues of discrimination. She supported a stripped-down version.
Other supportive testimony
Although I will not recount the testimony in the interest of brevity, other important stakeholders spoke in support of H. 483 at the request of the ADL. These witnesses included Asst. Attorney General Maura Healy, the head of the Civil Rights Division in the Office of the Attorney General; Canton Police Chief Ken Berkowitz who testified on behalf of the Mass. Chiefs of Police Association; Julie Johnson, who testified on behalf of the Mass. Teachers Association; the principal of Sharon High School (the only school administrator to speak); Sheila Decter of the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action; Attorney Sam Bickett of GLAD; Lisa Perry-Wood, Executive Director of the Mass. Commission on LGBT Youth; Co-Chair Jeff Stone of the Greater Boston Civil Rights Coalition; and Co-Chair Arline Isaacson of the MGLPC.
Some of the most powerful testimony came from members of the public who had not been recruited to appear and speak. John Kuyper of Roxbury introduced himself as a survivor of bullying for being gay in the 1950's. He said his experience was like "Peyton Place meets Lord of the Flies." He described being taunted as a "crybaby" and noted that his fundamentalist minister father offered no support. He said LGBT victims suffer alone. 50 years later, he said the wounds of his adolescent experience are still there, and that the sense of anger never leaves.
Kathleen Godbaut of Weymouth delivered a petition signed by 200 students at Weymouth High School calling for legislative action. The petition was prompted by the suicide of Carl Walker Hoover. David Laird testified as the father of 4 children, the oldest of whom is in fourth grade. He described his son's torment and his daily protestations that he didn't want to go to school. He said he had gone to school officials, who lacked understanding of how to take effective action. He said they needed guidance and help. John Graham, a nonagenarian who said he had been neither a bully nor a target, was moved to appear after reading a newspaper headline about the bullying of autistic students. Hard of hearing, Mr. Graham loudly decried the delay in action on anti-bullying legislation. He said the effects of bullying last a long time. He felt that bullying should be treated as a mental defect and a crime. Targets of bullying should not have the burden of solving the problem themselves yet schools turn a blind eye. Finally, a Quincy resident who has been a firefighter in Waltham for over 20 years quietly conveyed his pain as the father of a transgender son who died of a drug overdose earlier this year, after years of being bullied.
Conclusion
Only the House members of the Ed Committee attended the hearing, since the Senate was in session at the time debating a larger education reform bill. Nevertheless, the Senate members of the committee are seen as generally supportive already, while the opportunity to educate the House members was especially valuable. Committee members stayed throughout the 3-hour hearing and paid careful attention to the testimony. The impression I gathered from Chairman Walz was that the committee views the issue as one demanding action after years of delay. The committee is likely to combine the pending bills into a single version to report to the full legislature, and was open to suggestions for improving the final product. All in all, the presentation was well-coordinated, thorough, and deeply moving, but not too lengthy or repetitive. I was misty-eyed for much of the hearing, but then I'm a survivor of bullying myself and related to the testimony on a very personal level. |
